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Did you stop by last week and think “I have the opposite situation! I’m introverted and have an extroverted team!”?

This week we’ve got Coach Peter Pintus here with some tips on how to most successfully manage your extroverted team, while staying true to you.

Take it away Peter!

“Managing a high impact team successfully is critical for any organizational project. This can be a challenge when a manager’s personality type is introverted and the personality type of his/her team members is extroverted.

Why is this a challenge? Because introverts and extroverts tend to process information and approach tasks differently. Eric, an introverted team manager, prefers to process ideas internally while his extroverted team members prefer to process ideas by dialoging and openly interacting with others. Sara, another introverted team manager, prefers to spend time deeply thinking about and developing strategy and then implementing that strategy, while her extroverted team members prefer to think in broad terms, put a strategy in to place now (whether it is clearly defined or not) and then take the necessary time to critically evaluate that strategy. These two scenarios illustrate potential challenges for any introverted manager.

How can an introverted team manager with an extroverted team go from being a good manager to a great manager in these types of situations?

Following are six techniques that can help you manage your team toward success!

Be willing to model your role as leader by releasing your way of doing things so that your team can function optimally. The important thing is that the end goal is reached. By allowing team members to work in their extroverted way, you encourage engagement, collaboration, and accountability, rather than stifle it.

Make sure that the team task (e.g. deliverables and time frames) is clear and agreed to by team members. This will minimize confusion regarding your expectations and allow you to redirect the process if it goes off course.

Establish team rules. Make sure everyone has a chance to contribute, listen actively to others, and agrees to time frames and goals. Establishing agreed upon rules in advance circumvents potential issues associated with differences in the way an introvert and an extrovert approaches a task.

Allow sufficient time for team members to process externally through verbal interactions.

Create engaging team process activities such as visual strategic flowcharts and plans that provide team members opportunities to use their gifts and talents in an outward-focused way.

Request that team members provide you with pertinent information before any meetings so that you have the chance to review the material beforehand. This will help you feel more prepared when engaging in dialog with your team members.

The mark of a great manager is one who is willing to adjust their style so that their team members can successfully apply their uniqueness and strengths to achieving team goals!”

So, your extroverted. You love to be around your team and to talk out all our ideas and plans.

You get energized by having some alone time and you despise small talk.

And, your team? We’ll they despise small talk and need thinking time (alone!) to come up with their best ideas.

It can feel like a challenge when you want to hear their ideas on the spot.

This week we have Coach Judy Laws with us to share some thoughts on how to most successfully manage your introverted team, while staying true to you.

Take it away Judy!

“A great manager appreciates the difference between extroversion and introversion and finds ways to adapt and leverage these differences. To do this, they first need to understand the extroversion and introversion preferences.

Extroversion and introversion is about the direction in which we focus our attention and energy. Extroverts focus their energy and attention outwards; they are attracted to the outer world of people and events. Extroverts are more likely to: Speak-think-speak, speak out easily and often at meetings, favor an energetic atmosphere, find too little interaction stressful, and desire an action-oriented leader.

Introverts, on the other hand, focus their energy and attention inward; they are attracted to the inner world of thoughts and reflections. Introverts are more likely to: think-speak-think, be quiet in meetings and seem uninvolved, favor a calm atmosphere, find too much interaction stressful, and desire a contemplative leader.

As an extroverted manager, here are some things you can do if you have an introverted team.

Manage your Extroversion

In conversation or in a team meeting, pay attention to how much you are talking. Ask yourself, A.I.T. – Why am I talking? If the answer is I am doing most of the talking, stop and let the other person speak.

Extroverts (including Introverts conditioned in an extroverted world) need to develop sensitivity to the impact of their behaviour on introverts, particularly with respect to leaving “silences” to encourage introverts to take their share of the air in discussions.

Allow introverts the space that they need to produce their best work, which will be on their own or with a couple of their team members, in a quiet space.

When Working as a Team

Send out team meeting information ahead of time to allow introverts time to think about the topic, agenda items, etc.

Use Meeting Guidelines / Ground Rules, established by the team, to manage team dynamics.

Create opportunities for small group interaction.

Ensure that airtime is shared amongst the team. For example, “I noticed that we have heard from many of the same people and want to open the discussion to others who haven’t had a chance to share their thoughts.”

Devise methods for including everyone in a discussion, e.g. silent brainstorming, round robin allowing individuals to pass, surveying the team before the meeting, sharing the group’s input and then discussing it, etc.

Before proceeding with a decision or action, allow time for team members to think about it before proceeding.

Coach your introverted team members to let their peers (and you!) know when they are thinking and/or need time to think.

Finally, it is important to treat each team member as an individual, recognizing that individuals show up differently on the extroversion-introversion scale. Observe and learn more about each team member so that you can leverage their strengths and adapt your management style accordingly.”

Thank you, Judy!

Let us know how these tips work for you! And, if you’re an introverted Manager be sure to stop by next week for some tips for you!

We’ve all had those moments… you know, those moments when you are happily sitting at your desk knocking things out and then your phone rings and you hear:

“Heyyyy, so we’ve got a new project that we’ve got to get done by tomorrow” YIKES!

Instantly it’s all hands on deck and your to-do list is totally thrown out the window.

BUT – there are still things on that list that you need to get done! You can feel your heart rate start to heighten and your palms get sweaty – now what?!

How do you deal with the fires?

Step 1: Calm it down!

You know you’re not at your best when you are stressed. Nothing productive gets done well when you are in that space.

Do what you need to do to get back to a place of thinking in your logical brain verses thinking from your stress. How do you actually DO that?

Take a couple of long (6-8 second) deep breaths

Get out of the office for a minute, go walk across the street to grab a cup of tea or coffee

Plan for a quick run during your lunch break

Step 2: Take a step back

Make a list of all of the items that HAVE to get done today or tomorrow. Look to see if there is anything that you can push out another day or two, or delegate to someone on your team (need tips on how to delegate effectively? Check out here, here, and here).

Communicate with those around you of what came up: tell you boss that you’ve been handed this last-minute task and you’re prioritizing it, let your team know that you’ve been handed a huge project and that you’ll probably be a little more on edge today. Being transparent with those around you will serve you all well!

Step 3: Set Realistic Expectations

You know you can’t do everything, so start thinking through your to-do’s in buckets.

Bucket 1 – Quick knock-outs: Is there an item or two that you can complete in the next 20 or 30 minutes? Do those quickly – spend no longer than 30 minutes on each. Feeling better as things start to be checked off your to-do list? Great. Move to bucket 2.

Bucket 2 – the biggies: Buckle down and knock out the most important/time sensitive item. Is someone waiting for a piece from you to be able to work on theirs? Tackle that now.

Bucket 3 – Finish it up! Circle back to those important items that take a little longer.

Try these out and let us know your best practices in dealing with fires!

Working from home can come with many challenges—it’s part of the territory! However, there are just as many benefits, and as the world continues to convert to a predominantly digital space, working from home is a new challenge that many people are facing every year.

I used to work from home 1-2 days a week until recently, when I converted to working from home full-time! It has certainly come with it’s challenges, but the benefits outweigh these ten-fold. Here are a couple of ideas and strategies that I’ve used to help this process go smoothly.

Thought #1: Use your Time Smartly

Is there a particular time of the day where your creative juices are really flowing? Maybe there are certain times of the day that you find yourself more self-motivated than other times. Find that time, exploit it to your benefit, and plan your day’s work around those times. Is it in the morning? Do the draining tasks then! Save the motivating work, the work that gives you energy, for the time of day that you’re struggling to stay on-task.

For myself, I’m WAY more motivated in the morning. So this is the time that I save for time-consuming tasks that don’t inspire me, they don’t give me energy, but they simply have to be done. Once the clock hits 2:00PM, my morning coffee is wearing off, and my eyes start to wander to the book on my table, or my mind towards the many pleasure of the Netflix app. This is when I do the tasks that inspire me, that give me energy, and feed my brain and soul. I have meetings in the afternoon, and am re-inspired by these tasks and these people to finish the day strong.

Thought #2 – Pace Yourself

Throughout each day I always remind myself this: pace yourself. Know that every day will not be the productive, butt-kicking day that you want it to be. You’re not a task-churning robot, and that’s okay!

Be okay with failing at productivity some days. Don’t beat yourself up. Push through it, and know that tomorrow can be better! Some days I’m extremely motivated; and other days I’m not. Some days, I get 10 hours worth of work done in 5 hours. Other days I get 2 hours worth of work done in 7 hours. And often, these results are no different when working in a traditional office environment.

Thought #3 – Don’t Do it Alone

Lastly, if I’m really struggling to finish a report that has to be done that day, but my Motivation Meter is reading 0, I’ll video-conference a co-worker (or friend!) and ask them if I can “sit” with them while I finish this up. Just being able to have some banter back and forth can help “humanize” the work and get me through that home-stretch.

So let’s recap:

Use Time Smartly – Do the right tasks at the right time of day

Pace Yourself – Don’t expect perfection, it’s okay to fail some days

Don’t Do it Alone – Develop a work from home group of friends, and support each other through motivation and virtual relationships

Thanks so much for listening, and I hope that these ideas help you on your adventure in the growing group of people who work from home!

How have your 2015 goals been going? Making some progress? Hoping to make some headway soon?

Sometimes (we’re not pointing fingers here!) it’s hard to remember the goals or deadlines we’ve created for ourselves. It’s also exponentially harder to get things done if we don’t have some accountability.

Want to create that accountability for yourself? We’ve found some apps for that job!

Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll review a productivity/tracking app road-tested by one of our teammembers that will help you focus on (and hold yourself accountable to) the goals you’ve created.

Let’s check out App #1: Wunderlist

Who tested it?

Ashley Clark

Program Manager for 5, global, complex projects

Lover of learning and thinking strategically

Wife, frequent Instagrammer, and Mom of 2 kids (under 2 years)

Why I like it?

Multiple to-do lists for today, this week, this month, this year, etc.

Sharing capabilities for some (or all) of your lists with your friends

Simple layout, making it very user friendly

Easy task management that includes due dates, reminders, stars, and list groups

It’s free!

What could be better?

No sub tasks on created tasks

No option for reoccurring tasks

Ashley’s bottom-line:

This app is very easy to use for both you and sharing your goals with others! I found it easy to create to-dos and it was helpful in keeping track of all the different things I have going on in a day!